Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1887-04-22
The Long and Short Haul Clause SuS
pended In the South.


The Long and Short Haul Clause SuS-
pended In the South.
The Interstate Commerce Com
mission have practically suspended
the long and short haul clause OF
the new law so far as it relates to
the entire system of Southern rail-
roads. They have made their de-
cision on the prima .facie case as
submitted by railroad men, and
the only inference to be drawn is
that if these prima fdcie statements
be proven the clause will be sus'
pended on all the principal lines
from the OHIO river to the extreme
Southeast.
The Pittsburgh and Lake Erie
Company, which presented a pc
tition, for the same suspension,
will probably be granted it also,
and, so far as known, all other
roads will be treated in the same
way.
The policy of the commission
will be to leave affairs in their old
condition where the railroads claim
great damages, and then to investi-
gate the cases with a view of max
ing a final settlement.
In the decision the commission
have taken what seemed to be the
only course open to them unless
they intended to make their own
body entirely subordinate to the
letter of the law. The railroads
urged that they would sustain
damage from the enforcement OF
the clause, and the commission,
with their limited facilities, had no
wav of finding out anything to the
contrary. They stretched the rather
negative provision to suspend the
clause, therefore, to its fullest ex
tent, and abrogated practically
that portion Of the law until they
had the opportunity to investigate
The Importance Of this decision
from the side OF the strict con.
structiOnists of the act is the no.
tice it gives that the commission
assume the authority to either in
terpret or to set aside completely
one of its plainest provisions. This
was the view of the commission''
power taken by the Senate, but i
was not so understood in the House
and if brought out plainly in tha'
way might have caused the reiec
tiOn of the bill by the conference
committee.
The order for the suspension il
made for ninety days, subject tC
revocation or permanent suspension
if after investigation it is found
feasible and advisable.
The commission will meet in At
lanta, April Goth in Mobile, Apri
Doth New Orleans, May ID; ant
Memphis, May 4th, for the con
sideratlon of the subiect.matter o
the Southern roads petitions.
The Interstate commission hav'
not acted a day too soon in sus
pending the long and short hau
clause as tar as 1t applies to th'
Southern railroads. Laws of trad,
stronger than any which Congress
can pass settle the rates betweeI
competitive points, and unless thu
commission can extend the sus
pension to the traffic of all tn
great systems until it is clear 8
what points the suspension mus
be permanent and trade adjus
itself to new conditions, grave in
Jury to the business of the cOuntr,
must follow as a result of the law
1t will be found impossible to en-
force the law in one part Of tn
country and not in another. Th'
public is waiting for an Oflicia
construction of the fourth sectiol
of the act, and until that is fur
nished by the commission all tn
lines affected by the act woul'
seem to merit like treatment.
If the real difficulties in the wa
of administering the Interstat
Commerce act continue to accu
mulate at the present rate, and
the enforcement of that act shOul'
interfere with trade as it threaten
to do, it may become an absolut
necessity to call an extra session {
Congress to modify or to repeal il
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